Moray East offshore wind farm

Moray East is a 950 MW offshore wind farm with 100 turbines in Scottish waters. Its status in the Renewable Energy Planning Database (July 2026 extract) is: operational since 1 April 2022; the record was last updated on 12 April 2023. Its REPD grid reference is 29 km from the nearest postcode on land (AB56 4JN, Moray). As a project over 50 MW in Scotland, it is decided by Scottish Ministers under Section 36.

How it works ↓

Data: REPD July 2026 extract · calculated 7 November 2026 · Methodology and sources

950 MWoffshore wind farm

operationalstatus in REPD

12 April 2023record last updated

29 km from land (Moray)REPD location

Consent timeline

Date	Stage
28 August 2012	Application submitted
19 March 2014	Section 36 consent granted (Scottish Ministers)
6 June 2019	Construction started
1 April 2022	Operational

Project details

Technology: offshore wind farm
Capacity: 950 MW
Turbines: 100
Turbine capacity: 9.5 MW
Turbine height: 204 m
Status (REPD): operational
Record last updated: 12 April 2023
Operator or applicant: Diamond Green Limited, CTG & Ocean Winds
Consenting authority (REPD): Scottish Government (S36)
Application reference: not recorded
Nearest postcode on land: AB56 4JN (Moray), 29.5 km from the REPD grid reference
Time to decision: 81 weeks
Contracts for Difference: AR2
REPD reference: 2534

Who decides

As a project over 50 MW in Scotland, it is decided by Scottish Ministers under Section 36.

Postcode districts within 40 km

District	km
Buckie (AB56)	33.6
Banff (AB45)	37.5
Macduff (AB44)	37.7

Straight-line distance from the centre of each postcode district to the REPD grid reference of the wind farm, which is a single point for the whole site.

Other offshore wind projects within 30 km

Project	MW	Status	km
Beatrice	588	operational	16.4

All offshore wind farms in UK waters

Status and dates as recorded in the Renewable Energy Planning Database (July 2026 extract); the database can lag behind consent decisions. Location: REPD grid reference (57.9673, -2.7905).

Consent for Moray East came in spring 2014, and construction began more than five years later. The application was submitted on 28 August 2012, and Scottish Ministers granted consent under Section 36 on 19 March 2014, after 81 weeks, almost exactly the median for such decisions (81.1). Work started on 6 June 2019, and the 100 turbines of 9.5 MW, each 204 m tall, have been operational since 1 April 2022. The farm holds a Contract for Difference from the AR2 round. The data give no reason for the pause.

How it differs from Beatrice and Moray West

Beatrice, 16.4 km away, received its consent the same day, but has been operational since 5 August 2019, almost three years earlier; it has 588 MW and 7 MW turbines. Moray West, at 882 MW, comes fifth in the list of operational farms, straight after Moray East, which is fourth of 49 in the REPD extract for July 2026. The nearest districts on land: Buckie, Banff and Macduff.